Margaret of Valois

Margaret of Valois (French: Marguerite de Valois; 14 May 1553 – 27 March 1615), popularly known as Queen Margot (La Reine Margot, [la ʁɛn maʁɡo]), was Queen of Navarre from 1572 to 1599 and Queen of France from 1589 to 1599 as the consort of Henry IV of France and III of Navarre.

Margaret was the daughter of King Henry II of France and Catherine de' Medici and the sister of Kings Francis II, Charles IX and Henry III. Her union with Henry of Navarre, intended to contribute to the reconciliation of Catholics and Huguenots in France, was tarnished six days after the marriage ceremony by the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre and the resumption of the French Wars of Religion. In the conflict between Henry III of France and the Malcontents, she took the side of Francis, Duke of Anjou, her younger brother, which caused Henry to have a deep aversion to her.

As Queen of Navarre, Margaret also played a pacifying role in the stormy relations between her husband and the French monarchy. Shuttling back and forth between both courts, she endeavoured to lead a happy conjugal life, but her infertility and the political tensions inherent in the civil conflict led to the end of her marriage. Mistreated by her brother Henry, who was quick to take offence, and rejected by her husband, she chose the path of opposition in 1585. She took the side of the Catholic League and was thus exiled to Auvergne, which lasted for 20 years. In 1599, she consented to a "royal divorce", the annulment of the marriage, but only after the payment of a generous compensation.

A well-known woman of letters, considered both enlightened and a generous patron, Margaret played a considerable part in the cultural life of the court, especially after her return from exile in 1605. She preached the supremacy of platonic love over physical love. During her imprisonment, she took advantage of the time to write her Memoirs, the first woman to have done so. One of the most fashionable women of her time, her dress influenced many of Europe's royal courts.